Child Rearing Practices

[TubaRay]

Rick "who blames his parents for everything, heh, heh" Denney

Gee Rick, we all blame your parents for everything, too!

LOL

[MaryAnn]

It's interesting but when I was a couple decades younger I blamed my parents for everything too, but eventually the independence that was inborn kicked in. Since both my parents were Army volunteers during WWII, I think maybe I had a little different family culture than many when I was growing up.

I had many advantages that neither of my parents had...music lessons for one, that I was not suitably grateful for then but am now. Attention to nutrition (we were not allowed candy or junk food;) girl scout camp in the summer; stuff like that, although we didn't do things "rich" people did like go skiing, and we didn't have a boat.

The other fabulous lesson I got growing up was learning to manage money via the existence of an allowance. Not pay for work, but a steady small sum of money that I had to buy things I wanted out of. Not the essentials like food and clothing, but the perks. If I wanted a new baseball mitt (tomboy, of course) ... I had to save up for it. In high school I really wanted a tape recorder, and I saved up for that. That lesson of saving before buying has stuck with me and I find myself in much better financial shape than much of my generation, although I own a lot less stuff. I could buy half the world on time, it seems, but I can't see paying 12% interest over three years for something that is worn out by the time I've paid two or three times what it cost in the first place.

MA, still saving up for that new tuba

[Rick Denney]

Rick- even a casual review of literature from Attic Greece on up reveals that middle aged folks consistently feel that standards are dropping in youth and society is in the dumpster headed for the mullplatz. There are problems with youth but buddy- it ain't exactly time to fold the flag just yet.

I've reviewed literature more than casually, and I recognize that it is common for older folks to think younger folks are screwing up.

Here's an important point for younger folks to consider: The older folks are usually right.

Those older folks are bitching because they've seen how their own mistakes have cost them dearly, and they've had to work extra hard to make up for it. The younger folks should realize that the world they want--where the only pain they feel is self-induced--comes a price they may not be willing to pay when they are older. That's part of growing up.

Any review of literature will reveal that every generation has felt the desire to correct the mistakes of those that went before, and the first step to forging that new path was leaving home. I haven't seen any real desire on the part of those in their 20's and younger to ever leave home. That, to me, is a sea change. I'm sure it's happened before and it will happen again. The question is how bad will the consequences get before people see value in self-reliance again? The Great Depression was the antidote to the Roaring Twenties. Do we want to pay that high a price? I fear we've already decided.

Rick "who can't disagree with the notion that every fourth generation brings disaster on itself" Denney

Edit: I should have added above that I was casting more blame to the upstream generations than to the downstream generations, with my own generation getting the bulk of it. I'm not blaming our kids for following in our footsteps, though they will soon have to choose whether they follow or lead. So far, they seem to be choosing to follow, with only symbolic rebellion. It's hard to be a rebel when still being supported fully by one's parents.

[Tubaryan12]

The combination of ever increasing availability of manpower both skilled and unskilled (graduate enough college students and there's no reason to pay them much- especially when you can hire overseas talent far cheaper) means wages drop.

And this would happen even withouth the influence of overseas labor. These few things have happened in my short 41 yrs on the earth:

1. Operators no longer switch calls, place calls, or in most cases, even read the number after they find it for you.
2. We no longer pump our own gas (except for a few lucky places in the US).
3. ATM's
4. Self check outs at the supermarket (not to mention bag your own places).
5. Robots do a lot of the work in manufacturing.
6. Desktop computers have the power to do the jobs of several people at once.

Just from this short list (and I'm sure there are a lot more examples) it is easy to see that a lot of jobs are removed from the work force even as the population goes up. Add in foreign labor and the picture is even more bleak.

The only thing we really make in this country anymore is money.

And each day it takes less and less of us to do it.

[MaryAnn]

Ok, DUH here. Who is Steve Campbell?
MA, who obviously is insufficiently educated

[Tabor]

There are so many problems that endanger not only the education of children but the very LIVES of everyone around them that could have been solved earlier if spanking was still legal in schools. (and they wouldn't even get to the schools if the parents used this technique)

For example, a while back there was a first grader hauled away in handcuffs because he or she pulled a knife and threatened teachers and students. There was another, slightly older kid who was tazered by police because he wouldn't drop a weapon. The media always sensationalizes the schools as being hysterical and stupid, but the problem is that the only appropriate soloution has been taken away.

The appropriate thing in these cases with a child of these ages is a good hard spanking in front of their peers, but that option was taken away. Now, although it seems silly or stupid, schools are left with few options. Sometimes, the police are called in and respond according to what their police training dictates.

[Tubaryan12]

There are so many problems that endanger not only the education of children but the very LIVES of everyone around them that could have been solved earlier if spanking was still legal in schools. (and they wouldn't even get to the schools if the parents used this technique)

Tongue planted deeply into cheek:

Now Tabor, I'm going to have to give you a time-out for not being P.C.. You know very well in this day and age you can't say that.

Now back to reality:

If we could only get more people to think this way what a better world this would be.

[Mark]

Ok, DUH here. Who is Steve Campbell?
MA, who obviously is insufficiently educated

This may be old info now: http://www.paramountbrass.com/musician.htm because Campbell won the audition for principal tubist of the Minnesota Orchestra.